Bloomington Ballot Questions - Organized Trash

At our Senate District 50 Central Committee meeting on September 2, committee members discussed Organized Trash Collection and voted as a district to support saving organized trash, advocating for a no vote on Bloomington ballot questions #1 and #2.

Organized trash collection in Bloomington is on the ballot this year. A common argument against organized collection is that costs are "out of control" and that people can get "much better deals" if they went with a private hauler. So this got me to thinking: Are costs truly out of control? Can you get a better deal with a private hauler? Well, as it turns out, the answer is: not really. After researching the rates of five private haulers that operate in Richfield, Edina, and Eden Prairie, their rates are on average 26% MORE EXPENSIVE than the organized collection contract that was negotiated by the City of Bloomington. Only one company managed to even come close come close, and even then, only by about fifteen cents per month. Compounded with the fact that garbage haulers are looking at price increases of 10-20% for their residential customers in the coming year due to covid, while Bloomington's contract has an built-in average annual rate increase of 3% a year for the next five years, that fifteen cent edge will almost certainly not last for long. The choice here seems to be clear. Organized collection is equitable, it is good public policy, it's environmentally friendly, and it reduces traffic on the streets, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY: It's cheaper, too. Vote no on questions #1 and #2 this year.

Donavon Indovino Cawley, he/him, SD50 Secretary